Young Women out-drinking Young Men

[Guest guest]

Young women are out-drinking men of the same age in the UK but in no

other European country, experts are warning.

Analysis of a Europe-wide study also shows that alcohol consumption

in southern Mediterranean countries is falling, but rising in

northern Europe.

 

Liver disease is now likely to appear at a much earlier age,

Professor Moira Plant of Bristol University said.

 

She will tell a nursing conference on Thursday that alcohol is

cheaper and more available than ever before.

 

Professor of Alcohol Studies Professor Plant warned that if young

women in Britain continued to drink in this way, that they could

present problems for the health service in the future.

 

There are now young women in their late teens and early 20s

developing liver damage that in the past was not being seen until the

age of 60 or 70

 

Professor Moira Plant

 

She analysed research collected in a major international study

focusing on 12 European countries in 2004 and 2005.

 

She said: " Britain seems to be the only country in which women are

overtaking young men in the 18 to 24 age group. "

 

She said that elsewhere, and in the past in Britain, women tended to

drink in a much safer way than men.

 

Professor Plant said that some of the reasons women used not to drink

so extensively was because they feared for their physical safety when

they did.

 

This did not seem to be as much of an issue for them now, she added.

 

Habits

 

But she warned there was a delayed physical risk for women associated

with the health implications of binge drinking.

 

" There are now young women in their late teens and early 20s

developing liver damage that in the past was not being seen until the

age of 60 or 70, " she added.

 

Alcohol abuse is also linked with stomach ulcers, damage to the

oesophagus and damage to the brain.

 

Professor Plant is due to present her findings at the Royal College

of Nursing (RCN) research conference on Thursday.

 

RCN general secretary Beverly Malone said nurses could help by

raising awareness among young people.

 

'Key role'

 

She said: " It's about using every health education opportunity to

prevent binge drinking habits starting in the first place.

 

" That's where the nursing profession - from school nurses to

community nurses and family planning nurses - plays a key role and

can educate younger people about how binge drinking can seriously

harm their health. "

 

A spokeswoman for campaign group Alcohol Concern said: " Recent trends

in women's drinking are certainly cause for concern, and we're

pleased that this study shifts the issue away from simply being about

alcohol-related disorder and the 'ladette' culture, and actually

addresses the real health risks of drinking too much.

 

" Health professionals have a crucial role to play in educating

problem-drinkers about the health problems they could be storing up

for the future. "